


Secrecy

by Harmony_Whispers



Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: M/M, Magic, Pets, Snakes, Supernatural Beings, Threesome, Yaoi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-31
Updated: 2016-06-06
Packaged: 2018-07-11 10:48:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7045378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Harmony_Whispers/pseuds/Harmony_Whispers
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ryoma gained two snake pets when he rescued them on a snowy mountain. The snakes were somehow very clingy and wouldn't let go, so Ryoma had no choice but to take care of them. All was well until his snakes had another new motive and wanted to be his lover. Normally, that is impossible, but we're talking about demon snakes here, so the possibilities are endless.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I totally forgot that I have an account here, so I never get to post this story here until now. Sorry for the late upload! ^^'
> 
> For now, the setting is in the human world, but eventually will shift into the supernatural world where magic and such will appear and be explained. I'm not sure when that transition will happen, but I think around the fifth chapter or so.
> 
> Enjoy! And if you have any questions or want to have clarification for certain scenes/details, I'm more than happy to answer!

It was rather sudden and unexpected when Ryoma first gain two pets -without his parents' content- secretly and he was still thinking of a way to announce this to them. He wasn't sure how his parents would react and he did get quite attach to his pets, so he needed to plan everything carefully in order to achieve the results that he wanted. It all happened one day when he had traveled with his parents to a snowy mountain for skiing during the vacation.

Ryoma was off adventuring and exploring this new favorite hobby of his and he slid down the white slope. Ryoma, since young, was a fast learner and was able to master practically anything in a short span of time. Of course, skiing became one of them with no time at all. Tennis, of course, will always be his favorite sport and it will always be on Ryoma's mind. However, sometimes, Ryoma was in the mood for a change of air and want to try something he normally wouldn't do in order to find what his passions are outside of tennis.

His mother, along with his cousin Nanako, nagged him nonstop about being too obsessed with tennis and would spend his entire day on training, completely forgetting his daily task to eat. Tennis was what made him become too unfocused on what the current time is after all, and Rinko deemed tennis as something unnecessary in Ryoma's life. She decided that her son needed to try something different and this moment can be used to relax his mind and body. A change of scenery can serve as a positive thing and her family needs some family-bonding activity to boot. Moreover, too much of exercise was never a positive thing and Rinko was afraid that tennis would one day ruin Ryoma. In her opinion, tennis was dangerous due to various players using a dangerous play style and love to watch their opponents suffer in pain. That was one of the reason why she opposed her son to play the sport competitively, which may sounds too selfish, and it was enough that her husband was into this sport.

She sighed and feels that it was all worth it when it seems that at least Ryoma was enjoying skiing. It was worth all the pulling and persuasion the past week, trying to get Ryoma to agree to her plan. In addition, since her occupation is a lawyer, she is very good with her words and therefore, can be very persuasive. But in her son's case, her talent is basically useless. She had to use her mother card at the end to get what she wanted.

After she felt somewhat reassured about her son, she then scanned the snowy plain, looking for her idiotic husband. Where did Nanjiroh run off to? Suspicions rose in her chest and she felt that what she'll go through later is something she had experienced multiple times.

_That Nanjiroh couldn't do something indecent again... right?_

Rinko knew she couldn't trust that perverted monk, so she went to search for him, her mind momentarily stopped revolving around Ryoma.

Ryoma, on the other hand, kept skiing down the hill, going faster and faster each passing second. It was extremely fun and exciting at the same time. It was also quite nice as well. The cold and chilly breeze would graze past his cheeks as he traveled downwards, but at least the rest of his body didn't suffer the same fate. His cheeks were flush red from the cold and whenever he let out his breath, he can actually see it under this extremely freezing temperature.

Using his ski poles, Ryoma stick both poles into the deep snow, which serves as a break and ultimately, stopping the ride as well.

Ryoma take his ski goggles off, sliding them on top of his head. He looked around the area, which were devoid of the human population. There are only few animals lurking around.

"... Where am I?" He said after moments of silence. He looked behind, which was where he came from originally, but the falling snow made it too blurry for him to see anything, even with his sharp eyes. He soon gave up.

After reaching a conclusion, Ryoma decided to explore around and might as well see if he can take refuge somewhere for the time being. He couldn't possibly stay outside in the snow for long, could he?

Minutes later, Ryoma hate to admit but he was lost. Completely lost. Not only there wasn't any people around, which means Ryoma couldn't even seek for help, but the temperature was decreasing rapidly and his thick jacket, scarf, and boots couldn't help shield Ryoma from the cold entirely.

He shivered uncontrollably and he placed his hands enveloped with gloves on his face to help it regain back its warmth.

Ryoma walked on further. There must be somewhere where he can use as a shelter in this barren field.

He held onto this hope and continued moving. If he stay still, he'll freeze at a faster rate.

He stopped when he saw something on the ground that wasn't clear white from the precipitation. And he saw it twitched for a second. However, snow was soon piling upon this "object", completely covering the entire thing.

Somewhat curious, Ryoma shoveled closer and the snow crunched under his feet with each step he take.

He glanced closer at the pile of snow. Where was the thing?

Ah, there it was.

He reached over and pushed away the snow and uncovered a... brown snake.

Ryoma blinked in surprise. That was certainly unexpected. But at a closer look, the snake's tail was tangled with another tail and Ryoma concluded that it was another snake.

He quickly tried to help the other snake. Now there was two snakes: one brown, the other blue.

Ryoma wasn't quite sure what he should do at the moment. Should he just abandon these snakes and move on since he wasn't in a good situation to begin with, so there was no way he can aid someone else. But then again, these snakes looked like they were on the verge of death and kept shivering and wiggling, desperately trying to keep warm and stay alive. Even without seeing it, Ryoma can tell that the snakes' heart beat was slowing down and will completely stop if no help was offered soon.

He contemplated his options and decided to help these snakes. Maybe he can leave them in a refuge he'll settle in later?

He grabbed the two snakes, keeping in mind to not handle them roughly and harshly. The snakes squirmed and looked like they want to attack Ryoma, hissing weakly all the while.

Ryoma held the snakes away from his body once his natural instinct kicked in, in case the snakes were poisonous. "I don't want to harm you and just want to help. I promise I'll let you go once I found a place safe for you."

The snakes soon stopped struggling as if they understand Ryoma's words, which obviously couldn't be true.

Oh well, at least it made it easier for Ryoma.

Luck was on them when a cottage was in Ryoma's sight.

"Finally..."

Hurriedly, he ran to the cottage as fast as he can through the snow and quickly opened the door, closing it after.

"Safe!" He placed the snakes down and scram to find something he can use. He did find some matches and luckily, there were some wood in the hearth, so Ryoma quickly swipe the match across the surface and it was lit up. He then threw it into the wood and soon, a large fire was formed.

Ryoma take off his coat and boots, placing them near the fire to dry. He glanced at the snakes and saw them still shivering.

He felt bad despite the fact that he didn't cause it. He moved the snakes closer to the fire. "Feel better?"

The snakes of course didn't respond, which was expected.

Ryoma sighed. How long will he stay here? He really want to go back home.

After sitting there for awhile, he grabbed his coat and spread it on the floor, wrapping himself with it as he go to sleep. Today was a tiring day after all.

* * *

"Please, find my son! Please!" Rinko begged as she grabbed onto the workers, who was in charge of rescuing people that was lost in this snowy mountain.

"Of course, ma'am. Don't worry."

They tried to reassure her, but no words can persuade Rinko that her son was safe until she saw Ryoma safe and sound right infront of her. She knew that Ryoma wasn't that good with directions, since chances are, he wouldn't be able to get back here. That said, Rinko needs to rely on these people in hopes of finding her precious son.

She desperately wanted to find Ryoma herself, but right now the snow is getting thicker and thicker, making traveling more difficult as it is. With the strong wind blowing the snow, it was extremely challenging to be able to see anything and so Rinko has no chances of navigating her way around.

Rinko gripped her hair in frustration. Just how long will she be tortured like this? Just how long can she see her son once more?

All these thoughts took over Rinko's mind as tears flow uncontrollably down her chin.

"Rinko..." Nanjiroh said, reaching for her wife.

Rinko shake her head. Even her husband couldn't do anything to make her feel better.

* * *

Ryoma stirred as he felt something cold touch his skin. He turned his head to the side and wrapped his coat tighter around his slim body.

However, he still felt the coldness surrounding his body and so he opened an eye to see what was the cause of this coldness.

It was totally astonishing to see two snakes slithering into his sweater, with their heads poking out from the sweater, and their eyes directly in contact with Ryoma's.

"What...?"

The snakes continued to move around and eventually wrapped themselves around Ryoma's neck. For a second, Ryoma thought that the snakes will suffocate him but apparently, that wasn't the case. The snakes seemed content on where they were located and Ryoma was totally fine with it if not for the fact that it is getting itchy with the snakes' scales rubbing against his skin. He tried to control the urge to scratch his neck.

Ryoma looked down at the snakes and hesitantly touched their heads. After making sure that the snakes wouldn't attack him for this "disrespect", Ryoma continued to pet them as if right in front of him was his cat Karupin. Speaking of Karupin, he was starting to miss his beloved cat and was wondering if Karupin also misses her owner as well.

"Karupin..."

* * *

Ryoma strained his ears once again to make sure he wasn't imagining the voices of people. He walked to the window and rubbed the glass to make the condensed water disappear.

And there he saw it. There was a bunch of people, all carrying flashlights and were yelling Ryoma's name loudly.

Ryoma opened the cottage's door screaming, "I'm here!"

That was how he was rescued. The people make sure Ryoma was in a good condition with no injuries nor illness and they kindly asked Ryoma to get his belongings so they can immediately depart and head back to the hotel where the rest of the guests were located, including Ryoma's parents.

Ryoma went back to get his coat when he noticed that the two snakes were missing. He looked every nook and cranny in the cottage and still couldn't find the snakes.

"Hurry up, kid!" One of the people said, impatience present in his voice.

Hurriedly, Ryoma put on his coat and on his way, he glanced back at the cottage for one last time.

After the tear some reunion with his parents, Ryoma was finally released and was able to go back to his room.

He sat on his bed with a huff and his mind traveled back to the snakes.

_Where did they go?_

* * *

Few days later, the Echizen family went back to their house, away from the snowy mountain. And the family probably wouldn't go back to any snowy mountains for awhile; they had enough of seeing snow and experiencing heart attacks due to the Ryoma's disappearance again.

The first thing that Ryoma do as soon as he get back home was to take a bath. He always love taking baths for several reasons and he really need to relax after the whole ordeal. He shed his clothing and sink into the lukewarm water once the tub was filled almost entirely.

He leaned back and closed his eyes, planning to sit there and do nothing.

"... Paradise..." Ryoma murmured as he dump his head in the water and shake his head to wet his hair.

Once he was finished, he tilted his head to dump the water that entered his ear when he was underwater. Finally, Ryoma can hear the sounds clearly again.

Thump.

Ryoma glanced at the door, eyebrows raised. What was that?

Thump.

"Karupin? Is that you?" Ryoma expected to hear his cat meowing in response, however, that didn't happen.

Thump.

Now Ryoma couldn't ignore whoever was making sounds using the door. He grabbed a towel and tied it around his waist, then opened the door.

There was no one there and Ryoma was very confused until he felt something touch his feet.

He looked down and lo and behold, the snakes were there; the exact same snakes he was looking for awhile back.

"Kami, where are you hiding the whole time?" The snakes only wiggle their body more as a response.

* * *

"Here, this will be your 'home' for now," Ryoma said as he placed his old clothes underneath his bed to make a nice, little nest for the snakes.

"Good night," and Ryoma shut the light.

In the darkness, the blue snake sent his thoughts toward his friend, _Ne, Syu, should we show Ryoma our human form? It's getting very boring how we couldn't speak to him in our snake form._

The brown snake shake his head, _Not yet Sei. Soon, we'll. For now, we'll have to wait patiently. Though I can't wait to see how he'll react once he knows that we are demons and not just regular snakes._

_Yeah, can't wait indeed._


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter! Enjoy!

This past week had been terrible in Ryoma opinion. It was extremely uncomfortable to find two snakes trying to sleep with him instead in their nest that was custom made for them - Ryoma had tried to make it as perfect as possible, but since he never had experience in making a suitable shelter for animals, his final product kind of sucks in total honesty - which is something Ryoma can tolerate because his cat always sleep with him, so what's the deal with two extra snakes? Not a big deal if you ask Ryoma. But the main problem was that the two snakes had tried to follow Ryoma when he was going to take a bath (more than seven times and still counting), secretly mind you, and acted like they're just curious and all.

And of course, that was bullshit and Ryoma had enough proof that the snakes do know what they are doing and in fact, can comprehend human language, which was weird but Ryoma didn't worry too much about. Humans are not the only intelligent species on Earth after all, so it wasn't totally unbelievable. His beloved Karupin was the perfect example of that fact.

He was concern about this because he wanted privacy when entering the bath, so that he can be alone and think properly. However, it was extremely unnerving to have two snakes watching his every move, even when he's just trying to wash in peace.

The first time this had happened had startled Ryoma so much that he almost let out a scream. He was just trying to strip his clothing when the snakes enter his view just like that, out of nowhere. He would have slip when he lost his balance, but thankfully, he grabbed onto the doorknob and prevented the fall.

"You guys don't belong here..." Ryoma muttered as he throw the snakes out gently (despite what they had done, Ryoma simply wasn't someone who would treat animals cruelly). "Next time don't follow me when I'm entering the bathroom, alright?"

The snakes just slithered away, ignoring what Ryoma said.

And after history had repeated itself for more than three times, Ryoma just doesn't bother repeating himself and just lock the door (though he always make sure that the snakes weren't being sneaky by hiding something in the bathroom beforehand).

And now Ryoma finally had some peace on hand where no one, humans and animals included, would bother him. His father, being the usual perverted monk, always bothered on, talking about when he'll get a girlfriend. Ryoma had first ignored him but once his father kept repeating the same question several times, Ryoma had a strong urge to retort back and said "I'm looking for a boyfriend, not a girlfriend," just so he can see his father looking very shocked and horrified. And then, his father wouldn't bring up the topic again. While that sounded absolutely pleasing, Ryoma highly doubt that his father would let this go without much trouble and would most likely persuade Ryoma to change his sexuality. Therefore, there'll be more problems in the future if Ryoma did actually say what was on his mind. It's best if he kept silent and hope this would be over soon.

Ryoma walked past his father with his school bag slung over his shoulder and left the house, making sure to lock it.

"Yo! Echizen!" His senpai greeted and waved. Momo flashed him a smile.

Ryoma hopped on Momo's bike and it was at that moment that he caught a whiff of a strong smell. He scrunched his nose in response. "Momo-senpai, did you put on cologne?"

"Huh?" He started and then realized what Ryoma was talking about, "How did you noticed this fast? Was it so obvious? I made sure to not put a lot on me..." Momo sniffed himself and finally realized that he put too much on him.

"Why are you wearing it?"

Momo laughed, "You see, today I'm going on a date with Ann-chan and so, you know, a man needs to dress up when the times comes."

"... Momo-senpai, you do know that you'll exercise later and the sweat will wash off the cologne on you. Also, since you'll be taking a shower, the smell will be completely disappear."

Momo's mouth dropped. "NANI! I didn't thought about that! Oh God, what should I do?" He stopped pedaling as his foot was used as a brake. And then he glanced at Ryoma, "Say, do you think Tezuka-buchou would have cologne on him?"

"Of course not. You might want to ask..." Ryoma stopped and think for a second. Who would have cologne in their club? The answer is no one. Why would tennis players need cologne? And also, since everyone was focused on training, no one would really give much thought on how they look like to others, well, safe for Momo that is.

"I'm doomed. Ann-chan would hate me for being too smelly. Our first date is officially ruined before it even begun," Momo said as he cursed himself for being so stupid.

Ryoma sweat dropped at his friend and senpai's reaction. "Just make sure to scrub extra hard during shower so she won't smell your sweat. And I highly doubt that she would hate you just because of that."

Momo clasped Ryoma's hands with his own. "Thanks, Echizen! That made me feel better! You're right; after practice, I'll take a 30 minutes shower and get rid off all the dirty and sweat on me, then Ann-chan wouldn't complain about anything, right?"

"... Just hurry up and pedal! We'll be late!" Ryoma for once was eager to arrive to school on time because he was getting tired of Momo being insecure and being overly dramatic. His best friend was like a completely different person when it involves his girlfriend.

* * *

Rinko stepped into Ryoma's room and began to do her daily chore: to clean her son's room and make sure that it was tidy and organized. Ryoma himself wasn't the type to organize his belongings, and Rinko couldn't blame him since he was so tired every day due to practice, therefore Rinko was in charge of cleaning his room whenever she has time for it. At times, she left his job to Nanako once she couldn't escape from work.

She first opened the window to let fresh air enter and then she get to work. She then placed the books on the desk in one pile and other materials in the other pile. During the whole time, she was humming a light tone as a means to get her in the mood to work. And once she was in that state, she can accomplish this task very quickly.

Lastly, she decided to clean the floor with a mop that she had bring with her from before. She first clean the area farthest from the door and then from there, she goes backward until she reach the door. But before that, she needed to clean the bed and so that was what she did.

She bend her back as she pushed the mop forward, reaching deep under the bed. She moved the mop back and forth, so she can get rid of the dust that had been collected under there.

Rinko repeated this routine until she heard of a sudden hiss and then she stopped moving. Was this her ears playing a trick on her? She decided to investigate this and walked closer toward the bed. She lifted the bed sheets and was about to stick her head under when suddenly Nanjiroh shouted.

"Rinko! Come here for a second!"

"I'm coming!" And so her quest to find out what's under the bed wasn't completed and she didn't remember to check it afterwards as well.

* * *

Ryoma tapped his racket against his shoulder as he walked towards the locker room, wanting to use the shower immediately. It was then he heard Eiji's loud voice, "Congratulations, Momo! Wow, your first date! What do you plan to do today?" He looked very excited on the idea as if he was the one going on a date instead of Momo.

Momo laughed nervously and scratched his head as a habit, "Uh, I'm planning to bring her to a mall to buy whatever she wants, and then bring her to a fast food restaurant to eat. After that, I guess, the date ends."

"Oh, I see, a shopping date, huh?" Eiji nudged Momo, grinning.

"Yeah, I couldn't think of anywhere else to go for our first date. I figure since this is our first one, we should spend our time somewhere simple and then later, we'll spend it at a three star restaurant or something." Momo slightly blushed at his own words. He was indirectly implying that he and Ann will go on more dates in the future.

"You'll be fine, Momo! As long as you thought about what Ann will like, you're good to go!" Eiji smiled and his thumb was raised.

"Thanks! Oh god, I can't wait until we meet later..."

Ryoma sighed as he overhear this conversation. Momo was still going on and on about his date, huh? What was the big deal about dates in the first place? He walked pass by them and changed his clothes, then getting in the shower.

* * *

"Tadaima," Ryoma greeted as he entered his house and take off his shoes. No one replied, probably because they are all out. Ryoma walked up the stairs, toward his room and placed his tennis bag by his bed. He poked his head under the bed, and saw his two snakes looking at him, with their body in a spiral shape.

"Hey," He reached in and the snakes latched themselves on his hands, slowly wrapping around his elbow. "How was your day, today?" The snakes' tongues lick his skin, which feels very ticklish.

"Was the food enough? Should I go buy more?" Since Ryoma haven't announce the presence of the snakes to his parents, he had to use his own allowance that he saved from past tournaments to buy snake food in the pet shop. He had done this secretly, when his parents are out, so they wouldn't question him for bringing snake food (which was mice and other small, dead rodents) in the house. In addition, Ryoma had been spraying freshener in his room to get rid of the smell.

The snakes shake their head and leaned their heads forward.

For some reason, the snakes weren't in their moods and Ryoma doesn't know what to do to cheer them up since they were the first snakes he ever encountered in his life. And so, he was quite lost on this matter.

"Would you like to take a bath?" His cat loved to take baths, though Ryoma always had to persuade her every day to do so, and so Ryoma figured that the same could be said for the snakes. In addition, they haven't clean themselves in a long time, so maybe playing in the water might lift their spirits up.

Without waiting for their reaction, Ryoma brought the snakes to the bathroom and turned on the bath water in the tub, making sure that it wasn't too hot nor too cold. He turned off the water once it reached an appropriate level and placed the snakes in.

Ryoma frowned when the reactions weren't what he expected: the snakes weren't moving at all and just sit there in the water. "What's wrong? Are you not feeling well?"

Ryoma continue to try to get a reaction out of the snakes, but it seems that nothing is working. Should he contact a veterinarian tomorrow?

"Hey, can you please..." Ryoma was cut off when he heard his father's loud voice, announcing his presence. His father kept shouting for Ryoma as his footsteps get louder and louder, toward his son's room.

"Oi brat! Come out of your room!" Ryoma rushed to the bathroom door and tried to lock it, but his father was one step faster than him. Nanjiroh opened the door, uncaring if his son was using the toilet or washing himself, but it seems that neither was the case, so all ends well.

Nanjiroh raised an eyebrow, "Why are you so nervous?"

"What are you saying, baka oyaji?! And what did I tell you about entering my room, especially my bathroom, without permission?"

"Oh, what's the big deal; you don't have anything that I don't have, so what's the harm? Anyway, I want to talk to you about something," Nanjiroh tried to walk in the bathroom, most likely wanting to sit on the toilet seat as he speak.

Ryoma blocked him, "Let's talk outside."

"Why?" Suspicions rise in Nanjiroh's chest and he had a good feeling that his son was hiding something. And suddenly a knowing smile appear on his face, "Ah, seishounen, it's okay! Show your daddy what porn mags you're hiding! I swear I won't tell a single soul!" And the perverted monk pushed Ryoma forward, in search for perverted material.

"Oyaji!"

"Where are you hiding it? Cabinets? Or..." His eyes landed on two snakes, who was also staring at him. And so a staring contest begins.

After a while, Nanjiroh finally decided to break the silence, "Ryoma, explain." Ryoma gulped in response.


End file.
